Switching method

ABSTRACT

A method for providing identifiers for virtual devices in a network. The method comprises receiving a discovery data packet directed to a physical network node associated with a physical endpoint device. A response to the discovery data packet directed to a physical network node is provided, the response comprising an identifier of a virtual device. At least one further discovery data packet directed at least to said virtual device is received. A response to a first one of the further discovery data packets is provided, the response comprising an identifier of a virtual endpoint device. At least some functionality of the virtual endpoint device is provided by the physical endpoint device.

The present invention relates to systems and methods for providingidentifiers for virtual devices in a network.

It is often necessary to send data between devices in a computer system,for example it is often necessary to connect a processing device to aplurality of input and output devices. Appropriate data communication isachieved by connecting the devices in such a way as to allow them tosend data to each other over a physical link, which may be a wired linkor a wireless link.

It is known in the art to use a switch to route data packets from theoutputs of one or more devices to inputs of one or more other devices.Such a switch comprises one or more ingress ports arranged to allow thedata packets to be received by the switch, and a plurality of egressports arranged to allow the data to be transmitted from the switch.

Many conventional computer systems do not share input/output (I/O)devices. That is, each computer has its own dedicated I/O devices. Itis, however, advantageous to allow the sharing of I/O devices such thata plurality of computers can access one or more shared I/O devices.Sharing of I/O devices can lead to better resource utilisation,scalability, ease of upgrade, and improved reliability.

Sharing of I/O devices can be implemented using what is known as I/Ovirtualization. I/O Virtualization allows physical resources (e.g.memory) associated with a particular I/O device to be shared by aplurality of computers. One application of I/O virtualization, known assingle root I/O virtualisation (SR IOV), allows I/O devices on a singlecomputer to be shared by multiple operating systems running concurrentlyon that computer.

Current methods of sharing I/O devices between multiple operatingsystems generally require either modification to software running on theserver, modified or new I/O devices, or both, in order to implement I/Ovirtualisation.

For example, some PCI express devices can provide up to eightindividually addressable functions within the same device. In this way,particular operating systems executing concurrently on a computer can bearranged to access a particular function provided by the device, therebyallowing the device to be shared amongst the multiple operating systems.This requires the purchase and installation of devices which support theprovision of multiple functions, and additionally requires an awarenessthat the I/O device is being shared by software running on the computer.

Alternatively, intermediary software, sometimes known as a virtualmachine manager, may be run on a server. The virtual machine manager canco-ordinate accesses, by multiple operating systems running concurrentlyon the server, to physical resources connected to the server. In thisway, operation of one operating system does not affect operation of anyother operating system with which it shares physical resources such asI/O devices. Co-ordinating every access to a physical resource for aplurality of operating systems is a computationally expensive operationsuch that the performance of the server and the operating systemsrunning on the server can be negatively affected.

Various embodiments of the systems and methods described herein obviateor mitigate one or more of the problems outlined above.

According to a first aspect of an embodiment, there is provided a methodfor providing identifiers for virtual devices in a network, the methodcomprising: receiving a discovery data packet directed to a physicalnetwork node associated with a physical endpoint device; responding tothe discovery data packet directed to the physical network node, saidresponse comprising an identifier of a virtual device; receiving atleast one further discovery data packet directed at least to saidvirtual device; and responding to a first one of said further discoverydata packets, said response comprising an identifier of a virtualendpoint device, at least some functionality of the virtual endpointdevice being provided by the physical endpoint device.

By responding to discovery data packets within a network by providingidentifiers of virtual devices and virtual endpoint devices, a serverconnected to the network can be caused to register the existence ofdevices, and endpoint devices which are not physically present withinthe network. In this way, the server can more efficiently coordinate theuse of resources provided by the network. More specifically, the servercan be caused to register a plurality of virtual devices thefunctionality of which are provided by a smaller number of physicaldevices.

Where references are made herein to a discovery data packet being“directed” to a particular device, such references cover any meansintended to cause a data packet to be received by the particular device.For example, where a data packet is addressed to a particular device, itis directed to that device even if it is, in fact, received by anotherdevice. Such addressing may be carried out by an originator of thediscovery data packet or by an intermediate device. Where reference ismade to a data packet being direct at least to a particular device, suchreference is to a data packet being intended for that particular deviceas well as possibly other devices.

The physical network node may comprise a switch to which the physicalendpoint device is connected.

The physical network node may comprise a bridge to which the physicalendpoint device is connected. Such a bridge may be a component of aswitch.

The discovery data packet and the at least one further discovery datapacket may be received at the switch and the responses to the discoverydata packet and the at least one further discovery data packet may begenerated at the switch. In this way the switch may be arranged to“create” virtual devices in a way which is transparent to physicaldevices connected to the switch. In this way, conventional devices canbe connected to the switch but sharing of physical endpoint devices isenabled by the creation of virtual endpoint devices.

The discovery data packet and the at least one further discovery datapacket may be received at a control device connected to the switch andthe responses may be generated at the control device. In such a case,the “creation” of virtual devices may be managed by the control device,avoiding any need to modify functionality of the switch.

The method may further comprise receiving the discovery data packet andthe at least one further discovery data packet at the switch andredirecting the discovery data packet and the at least one furtherdiscovery data packet to the control device. The identifiers of thevirtual device and the virtual endpoint device may be provided by thecontrol device.

The discovery data packet and the at least one further discovery datapacket may be received from a device connected to the switch. Forexample, the discovery data packet and the at least one furtherdiscovery data packet may be received from a server connected to theswitch. Each of the discovery data packets may emanate from a discoverycontroller provided by a server connected to the network.

The method may further comprise receiving a data packet addressed to thevirtual endpoint device and transmitting the data packet to the physicalendpoint device. Such transmission to the physical endpoint device maybe caused by the control device.

The method may further comprise modifying the data packet such that itis addressed to the physical endpoint device. Such modification may becarried out by the control device.

Data packets may be received at the switch. The method further maycomprise determining at the switch whether the data packet comprises acommand and if it is determined that the data packet comprises acommand, forwarding the data packet to the control device.

The virtual device may comprise a virtual network node. For example, thevirtual device may be a virtual switch, or a virtual bridge.

The method may further comprise responding to a second one of thefurther discovery data packets by providing an identifier of a furthervirtual device.

The response to the first one of the at least one further discovery datapackets may indicate that the virtual endpoint device is connected tothe further virtual device.

The discovery data packet directed to a physical network node may bereceived at a first time, while the second one of the further discoverydata packets may be received at a second time following the first time.The first one of the further discovery data packets may be received at athird time following the second time.

The method may further comprise receiving a plurality of discovery datapackets, each of the plurality of discovery data packets directed to avirtual device, and responding to each of the plurality of discoverydata packets with an identifier of a respective virtual endpoint device.

Each of the discovery data packets may be arranged to carry out a depthfirst search of devices in the network. A depth first search of anetwork is a search in which, starting from a root node of the network,a path is traversed to a leaf node of that network. Having reached aleaf node of the network, the path is traversed in reverse until a nodeis reached from which a previously untraversed branch extends. When sucha node is reached, the previously untraversed branch is traversed. Thisprocess continues until all branches of the network are fully traversed.That is, sequential discovery data packets are used to enumerate nodeson a particular path to a leaf node. Having reached a leaf node, a firstuntraversed path extending from a node which is encountered when saidparticular path is traversed in a reverse direction is traversed, and afirst device on said untraversed path is enumerated using theimmediately subsequent data packet.

The physical endpoint device may be an I/O device, such as a networkcard.

The physical network node may be associated with a plurality of physicalendpoint devices.

The network may be a PCI Express network. The discovery data packets maybe PCI Express discovery data packets arranged to enumerate the devicesin the PCI Express network, while the data packets may be PCI Expressdata packets. The virtual devices may be virtual PCI Express devices.The physical endpoint device may be a PCI Express endpoint device suchas a PCI Express I/O device.

The physical endpoint device, or at least one of the physical endpointdevices, may provide functionality of a plurality of virtual endpointdevices. The functionality of at least one virtual endpoint device maybe provided by a plurality of physical endpoint devices.

Each of the discovery data packets may emanate from a server.

The server may be arranged to run a plurality of virtual machines. Forexample, the server may be arranged to run a greater number of virtualmachines than there are physical endpoint devices connected to the PCIExpress network. The presently described embodiments may therefore allowthe server to allocate each virtual endpoint device to a respectivevirtual machine.

It will be appreciated that aspects of the disclosed embodiments can beimplemented in any convenient way including by way of suitable hardwareand/or software. For example, a switching device arranged to implementthe embodiments may be created using appropriate hardware components.Alternatively, a programmable device may be programmed to implement thedescribed embodiments. Some embodiments therefore also provide suitablecomputer programs for implementing features and aspects of theembodiments. Such computer programs can be carried on suitable carriermedia including tangible carrier media (e.g. hard disks, CD ROMs and soon) and intangible carrier media such as communications signals.

Embodiments of the methods an systems are now described, by way ofexample, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration showing a network in which a serveris connected to an I/O device through a switch;

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration showing a network in which a serveris connected to three I/O devices through a switch;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing processing carried out to enumerate thenetwork of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a is a schematic illustration showing the network of FIG. 1after the processing of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of the network of FIG. 1 modified toinclude a virtualization proxy controller in accordance with embodimentsof the disclosed systems;

FIG. 6 is a schematic illustration showing how data packets aretransferred between a server, an I/O device and the VPC in thearrangement of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of the network of FIG. 5 as seen bythe server after processing in accordance with embodiments of thedisclosed systems;

FIG. 8 is a schematic illustration of a table stored by thevirtualization proxy controller of FIG. 5;

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustration of a table stored by a virtualizationproxy controller in a network having two I/O devices;

FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing processing carried out by thevirtualization proxy controller to direct data packets through thenetwork of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 11 is a schematic illustration of a showing how a VPC may beconnected to an I/O device and a server through bridges in a switch.

Referring first to FIG. 1, there is shown a schematic illustration of anetwork. A server 1 comprises a central processing unit (CPU) 2 and anetwork interface 3, the CPU 2 and the network interface 3 are connectedby a connection 4. The server 1 is connected to an input/output (I/O)device 5 via a connection through a switch 6. The server 1 and the I/Odevice 5 communicate using the PCI Express protocol. That is, the I/Odevice 5 is a PCI Express device and the switch 6 is a PCI Expressswitch, while the network interface 3 is a PCI Express networkinterface. It will be appreciated that PCI Express is used merely by wayof example and that other interconnect technologies could be similarlyemployed. In PCI Express the network interface 3 is often termed a rootcomplex (RC).

The switch 6 comprises two bridges 7, 8. The network interface 3 isconnected to the bridge 7 by way of a connection 9, the bridge 7connects to the bridge 8 by way of a connection 10 and the bridge 8connects to the I/O device 5 by way of a connection 11.

The server 1 communicates with the I/O device 5 by sending and receivingdata packets through the switch 6. A transaction between the I/O device5 and the server 1 may be made up of one data packet or a plurality ofdata packets. The server 1 may transmit data packets to or receive datapackets from the I/O device 5. For example, a single transaction mayinvolve the server 1 sending a request data packet to the I/O device 5and the I/O device 5 responding by sending one or more completion datapackets to the server 1. Data packets sent from the server 1 to the I/Odevice 5 are first transmitted from the network interface 3 to thebridge 7 over the connection 9. From the bridge 7, data packets aretransmitted to the bridge 8 over the connection 10. From the bridge 8,data packets are transmitted to the I/O device 5 over the connection 11.

The I/O device 5 may be arranged to provide a plurality of independentdevice functions, a maximum of eight functions being supported by thePCI Express protocol. That is, for example, the I/O device 5 may appearto the server 1 to be eight separate devices. Each device function ofthe I/O device 5 has a corresponding identifier uniquely identifyingthat function. Data packets sent from a particular device function of ashared I/O device 5 have a transaction identifier comprising a requesteridentifier that corresponds to the identifier of the device functionsending the data packet.

It will be appreciated that the arrangement of FIG. 1 shows a simpleconnection between the server 1 and the I/O device 5. FIG. 2 shows analternative arrangement where a switch 12 provides communication betweenthe server 1 and three I/O devices 13, 14, 15. The server 1 is connectedto an upstream bridge 16 of the switch 12, while each of the I/O devices13, 14, 15 is connected to a respective downstream bridge 17, 18, 19.Each of the downstream bridges 17, 18, 19 is connected to the upstreambridge 16.

As is now described in more detail with reference to FIG. 3, theenumeration of a PCI Express network of the types shown in FIGS. 1 and 2is performed using a depth first search of the devices connected to thenetwork. The enumeration process is intended to apply identifiers toeach device connected to the network, and to allow the server 1 toobtain information as to the devices connected to the network.

The processing of FIG. 3 is first described in general terms. At step S1enumeration of a PCI Express network begins when enumeration softwarerunning on a server connected to the network sends an enumerationcontrol packet along the connection from the server's network interface,to determine, at step S2, whether there are any devices connected tothat connection which have not been enumerated.

The connection from the network interface (or root complex) is generallyenumerated as BUS0. If it is determined that there is an unenumerateddevice connected to the bus BUS0, that device will respond to theenumeration control packet by returning a response control packetidentifying itself to the enumeration software.

If it is determined that an unenumerated device is connected to the busBUS0, processing then passes to step S3, and, based on the informationin the response control packet, it is determined whether the deviceconnected to the current bus is a bridge or an endpoint. A bridge is adevice which connects two devices, while an endpoint has only aconnection to a single device. If the device connected to the bus BUS0is a bridge, processing passes to step S4 and the bridge is assigned adevice number (which is unique for that bus) by the enumerationsoftware. For example, the first device enumerated on the bus BUS0 maybe assigned the device number 0. The downstream (i.e. away from theserver) connection from the device 0 is assigned the next available busnumber. For example, where a bridge is the first enumerated deviceconnected to bus BUS0, the downstream connection from that bridge may beenumerated as BUS1.

As part of the enumeration of the bridge at step S4, the enumerationsoftware sets the values of bus number registers stored at the bridge. Aprimary bus number register stores the bus number of the bridge'simmediate upstream (i.e. towards the server) connection, e.g. BUS0 for adevice connected to the bus BUS0. A secondary bus number register storesthe bus value of the bridge's immediate downstream connection, forexample BUS1 where the bridge is the first device connected to the busBUS0. A subordinate bus number register stores the bus number of thefurthest enumerated downstream bus from the bridge.

From step S4 processing passes to step S5 at which the enumerationsoftware inspects the next bus in the network hierarchy. Processing thenpasses to step S2, at which it is determined whether there are anyunenumerated devices connected to the current bus (i.e. the bus selectedat step S5). Processing loops through steps S2 to S5 until there are nofurther bridges in a particular branch of the PCI Express network beingenumerated.

If, at step S3, it is determined that an unenumerated device connectedto a bus is an endpoint in the hierarchy (such as an I/O device),processing passes to step S6 and the endpoint is enumerated with adevice number unique for the bus on which it is connected.

As there are no further PCI Express connections from an endpoint,processing passes from step S6 to step S7 and the enumeration softwarereturns to the previous bus in the network hierarchy to determine, atstep S2 whether there are any devices on that bus which have yet to beenumerated.

If, at step S2, it is determined that there are no further devices on aparticular bus to be enumerated, processing passes to step S8 at whichit is determined whether the bus currently being examined is the root ofthe network hierarchy (i.e. the bus BUS0). If, at step S8 it isdetermined that the bus currently being examined is not the root,processing passes to step S7 and the enumeration software returns to theprevious bus in the network hierarchy to determine, at step S2 whetherthere are any devices on that bus which have yet to be enumerated.

If, on the other hand, it is determined at step S8 that the current busis the root, this shows that every branch of the network hierarchy hasbeen traversed such that there are no further bridges or endpoints inthe network to be enumerated, and processing therefore ends at step S9.

To aid understanding of the processing described with reference to FIG.3, an example is now provided with reference to the arrangementillustrated in FIG. 4. FIG. 4 shows the arrangement of FIG. 1 after theprocessing described above with reference to FIG. 3.

At step S1 the server 1 transmits an enumeration control packet alongthe connection 9 (enumerated as the bus BUS0). At step S2 it isdetermined that there is a device connected to the current bus (the busBUS0) when the bridge 7 responds to the enumeration control packet. Atstep S3 it is determined, from the information contained in theresponse, that the device connected to the current bus (the bus BUS0) isa bridge. At step S4, the bridge 7 is enumerated as device 0 on the busBUS0, and the connection 10 is enumerated as BUS1.

The primary bus register of the bridge 7 is set to indicate the busBUS0, the secondary bus register of the bridge 7 is set to indicate thebus BUS1, and the subordinate bus register of the bridge 7 is set toindicate the bus BUS1 which is currently the furthest enumeratedsubordinate bus of the bridge 7 (although the subordinate bus registeris updated as described below). At step S5 the enumeration softwareproceeds to inspect the next bus in the hierarchy, i.e. the bus BUS1,and processing returns to step S2.

At step S2 it is determined that a device, the bridge 8, is connected tothe current bus (the bus BUS1), and at step S3 it is determined that thedevice is a bridge. At step S4 the bridge 8 is enumerated as device 0 onthe bus BUS1 and the connection 11 is enumerated as BUS2.

The primary bus register of the bridge 8 is set to indicate the busBUS1, the secondary bus register of the bridge 8 is set to indicate thebus BUS2, and the subordinate bus register of the bridge 8 is set toindicate the bus BUS2. The subordinate bus register of the bridge 7 isnow amended to also indicate the bus BUS2, as this is now the furthestenumerated subordinate bus of the bridge 7. At step S5 the enumerationsoftware proceeds to inspect the next bus in the hierarchy, i.e. the busBUS2, and processing returns to step S2.

At step S2, it is determined that there is a device connected to the buscurrently being examined (the bus BUS2), and at step S3 it is determinedthat this device is an endpoint, the I/O device 5. Processing thereforepasses to step S6 and the I/O device 5 is enumerated as device 0 on thebus BUS2. Processing then passes to step S7 and the previous bus in thehierarchy, i.e. the bus BUS1 is set to be the current bus.

At step S2 it is determined that there are no further devices on thecurrent bus (the bus BUS1), and at step S8 it is determined that thecurrent bus is not the root of the network hierarchy. Processingtherefore passes to step S7 and the previous bus in the hierarchy (thebus BUS0) becomes the current bus.

There are no further devices connected to the bus BUS0, thereforeprocessing passes to step S8 and it is determined that the current busis the root of the network hierarchy. Processing passes from step S8 andends at step S9.

Having described the enumeration of a PCI Express network, there is nowdescribed the enumeration of a PCI Express network modified inaccordance with an embodiment. FIG. 5 illustrates the network of FIG. 1adapted in accordance with embodiments of the systems, while FIG. 6shows how the network of FIG. 5 is perceived by the server 1 afterenumeration in accordance with an embodiment of the systems. To aidclarity the CPU 2 and the network interface 3 are not shown in FIG. 5.

Referring to FIG. 5 it can be seen that the server 1 is adapted toexecute three virtual machines 25, 26, 27 concurrently. Each virtualmachine 25, 26, 27 may comprise an operating system requiring access tophysical resources on the PCI Express network, such as I/O resources.

A virtual machine manager 28 operates on the server 1 between thehardware of the server 1 and the virtual machines 25, 26, 27 running onthe server 1. The virtual machine manager 28 provides an abstracted viewof the hardware resources available to the server 1 (includingprocessor, memory, and resources connected to the PCI Express networksuch as the I/O device 5) to each of the virtual machines 25, 26, 27such that each virtual machine 25, 26, 27 is unaware of the othervirtual machines operating on the server 1. The virtual machine manager28 can therefore ensure that operation of any one of the virtualmachines 25, 26, 27 does not conflict with the operation of another ofthe virtual machines 25, 26, 27. All communications between a virtualmachine 25, 26, 27 and a physical resource are processed by the virtualmachine manager 28.

A further device, a virtualization proxy controller 29, is connected tothe switch 6. As is described in further detail below, thevirtualization proxy controller 29 provides a virtualized view of thedevices in the PCI Express network to the server 1. Operation of thevirtualization proxy controller 29 is configured by a microcontroller 30which receives commands from a management server 31. In this way anadministrator can use the management server 31 to provide commandsindicating how the virtualization proxy controller 29 should operate,and such commands are then provided to the virtualization proxycontroller 29 by the microcontroller 30.

In general terms, some data packets between the server 1 and the I/Odevice are intercepted within the switch 6 and are directed to thevirtualization proxy controller 29. Such data packets can be subjectedto processing by the virtualization proxy controller, and suchprocessing can be carried out in a way which is transparent both to theserver 1 and the I/O device 5.

PCI Express transactions can, for present purposes, be considered aseither control transactions or data transactions. Data packets which arepart of control transactions are redirected to the virtualization proxycontroller 29, while data packets which are part of data transactionsare routed in a conventional manner through the switch, that is from asource directly to a destination via the switch 6. Transactions usingthe PCI Express protocol can generally be classified into one of fiveclasses:

1. Commands sent from a server to an I/O device;

2. Status read commands sent by a server relating to resources of an I/Odevice;

3. I/O device commands reading command descriptors in server memory;

4. I/O device commands writing status descriptors in server memory; and

5. I/O device commands reading/writing data buffers in server memory

Transactions classified in classes 1 to 4 are considered to be controltransactions, and data packets of such transactions are redirected tothe virtualization proxy controller 29 as described in further detailbelow. Transactions classified in class 5 are considered to be datatransactions and data packets of such transactions are not redirected tothe virtualization proxy controller 29. It can be noted that datatransactions make up the vast majority (approximately 90%) oftransactions between servers and I/O devices.

The redirection of data packets of control transactions is schematicallyillustrated at a high level in FIG. 6, by way of an example involving adata packet sent from the server 1 to the I/O device 5. It can be seenthat data packets transmitted by the server 1 are received by the switch6. Data packets which are part of data (i.e. not control) transactionsare forwarded directly to the I/O device 5 as indicated by a path 32through the switch 6 shown in full line. Data packets which are part ofa control transaction are redirected by the switch 6 to thevirtualization proxy controller 29, being forwarded along a path 33 ashown in broken line. Data packets are also transmitted from thevirtualization proxy controller 30 to the I/O device 5 along the path 33b. The virtualization proxy controller 29 may transmit data packets tothe server 1 along the path 33 a of its own volition or in response toreceipt of a particular data packet from an I/O device 5.

An administrator may instruct the virtualization proxy controller 29 toprovide a virtualized view of the devices in the PCI Express network,such that the virtual machine manager 28 running on the server 1 detectsthree I/O devices, that is sufficient I/O devices to assign each of thevirtual machines 25, 26, 27 with a dedicated I/O device. The managementserver 31 therefore provides an interface through which an administratorcan configure the number, and location of virtual devices in the PCIExpress network, the functionality associated with the virtual devicesbeing provided by physical devices connected to the PCI express network.

In order to provide a virtualised view of the devices in the PCI Expressnetwork, the virtualization proxy controller 29 is arranged to interceptenumeration control packets during the initialisation of the PCI Expressnetwork, and to respond to those enumeration control packets such thatenumeration software running on the server 1 is caused to register theexistence of a device hierarchy that does not physically exist. In thisway, the virtualization proxy controller 29 can create a virtualizeddevice hierarchy in which there are a number of I/O devices specified bythe management server 31. For example, as set out above, thevirtualization proxy controller 29 can create a virtualized devicehierarchy comprising three I/O devices, such that each virtual machine25, 26, 27 can access what appears to be a dedicated I/O device. In thisway, the relatively computationally expensive operation of the virtualmachine manager 28 is reduced, by removing the need to co-ordinateaccesses by the virtual machines 25, 26, 27 to the physical I/O device5.

The operation of the virtualization proxy controller 29 in providing avirtualized view of the device hierarchy is now described with referenceto the flowchart of FIG. 3 and the arrangement illustrated in FIG. 7.

The enumeration of the network shown in FIG. 7 proceeds as describedwith reference to FIG. 1. That is, the connection 9 is enumerated asBUS0, the bridge 7 is enumerated as device 0 on the bus BUS0, theconnection 10 is enumerated as BUS1, the bridge 8 is enumerated asdevice 0 on the bus BUS1 and the downstream connection of the bridge 8is enumerated as BUS2. Having enumerated the bridge 8 as device 0 on thebus BUS1, processing then passes to step S5 of FIG. 3 and theenumeration software proceeds to interrogate the next level in thenetwork hierarchy, i.e. the bus BUS2.

Rather than returning data indicating the enumeration of the I/O device5, the enumeration control data packet is processed by thevirtualization proxy controller 29 which causes a response to beprovided to the enumeration control data packet, relating to a virtualdevice.

In more detail, at step S2 of FIG. 3, the virtualization proxycontroller 29 responds to the enumeration control data packet with aresponse to indicate that a bridge is connected to the bus BUS2. Abridge 34 is shown in dashed outline in FIG. 7 to indicate that thebridge 34 is a virtual bridge. The enumeration software enumerates thevirtual bridge 34 as device 0 on the bus BUS2. A virtual connection 35from the virtual bridge 34 is enumerated as BUS3.

Processing then passes to step S5 and the enumeration softwareinterrogates what appears to be the next bus in the hierarchy, i.e. thevirtual bus BUS3. Again, the enumeration control packet is redirected tothe virtualization proxy controller 29, which responds to indicate thata bridge 36 is connected to the bus BUS3. At step S4 the virtual bridge36 is enumerated as device 0 on the bus BUS3 and the virtual connection37 from the bridge 36 is enumerated as BUS4.

At step S5 the enumeration software interrogates what appears to be thenext bus in the hierarchy, the virtual bus BUS4. The enumeration controlpacket is again redirected to the virtualization proxy controller 29.The virtualization proxy controller 29 responds to indicate that an I/Odevice (the virtual I/O device 38) is connected to the virtual bus BUS4.Processing therefore passes through steps S2, S3 and to S6 at which thevirtual device 36 is enumerated as device 0 on the bus BUS4.

Processing then passes to step S7, and the enumeration softwareinterrogates the previous bus in the hierarchy, i.e. the bus BUS3 (thevirtual connection 35), to determine if there are any unenumerateddevices on the bus BUS3. The enumeration control packet is againredirected to the virtualization proxy controller 29 which is arrangedto respond as though a further bridge (the virtual bridge 39) isconnected to the virtual bus BUS3. Processing therefore passes fromsteps S7 to S2 at which the server 1 determines that there is anunenumerated device on the bus BUS3, and from step S2 to S3 at which itis determined that the unenumerated device is a bridge. Processingtherefore passes to step S4 and the virtual bridge 39 is enumerated asdevice 1 on the bus BUS3, while the virtual connection 40 from thevirtual bridge 39 is enumerated as BUS5.

From step S4, processing passes to step S5 and an enumeration controlpacket is sent along the next bus in the hierarchy, the virtual busBUS5. The enumeration control packet is redirected to the virtualizationproxy controller 29. The virtualization proxy controller 29 responds toindicate that an I/O device (the virtual I/O device 41 in FIG. 7) isconnected to the virtual bus BUS5. Processing therefore passes throughsteps S2, S3 and to S6 at which the virtual I/O device 41 is enumeratedas device 0 on the bus BUS5.

Processing then passes to step S7, and an enumeration control packet istransmitted along the previous bus in the hierarchy, i.e. the virtualbus BUS3, to determine if there are any unenumerated devices on thevirtual bus BUS3. The enumeration control packet is again redirected tothe virtualization proxy controller 29 which is arranged to respond asthough a further bridge (the bridge 42) is connected to the virtual busBUS3. Processing therefore passes from steps S7 to S2 at which theserver determines that there is an unenumerated device on the bus BUS3,and from step S2 to S3 at which it is determined that the unenumerateddevice is a bridge. Processing therefore passes to step S4 and thevirtual bridge 42 is enumerated as device 2 on the bus BUS3 while thevirtual connection 43 from the virtual bridge 42 is enumerated as BUS6.

Processing then passes to step S5 and an enumeration control packet istransmitted along the next bus in the hierarchy, the virtual bus BUS6.The enumeration control packet is redirected to the virtualization proxycontroller 29. The virtualization proxy controller 29 responds toindicate that an I/O device (the virtual I/O device 44) is connected tothe virtual bus BUS6. Processing therefore passes through steps S2, S3and to S6 at which the virtual device I/O 44 is enumerated as device 0on bus BUS6.

There are no more devices in the network of FIG. 7, and thevirtualization proxy controller 29 is not arranged to virtualize anyfurther devices. As such, processing loops through steps S7, S2 and S8until it is determined at step S8 that the current bus is the bus BUS0.Processing then passes from step S8 to end at step S9.

As, in the arrangement of FIG. 7, there is only a single physical I/Odevice, the I/O device 5, connected to the server 1, data packetsdirected to one of the virtual I/O devices 38, 41, 44 are re-directed,by a controller 7 a provided at the bridge 7 within the switch 6 to theI/O device 5. The process of re-directing the control packets is nowdescribed in further detail.

The virtualization proxy controller 29 maintains a record of themappings between the virtual I/O devices 38, 41, 44 and queues providedby the physical I/O device 5 in a mapping table 45. The virtual machinemanager 28 maps each virtual machine to a respective virtual device andconsequently a respective queue in the physical device 5 (although themapping to queues is not apparent to the virtual machine manager 28).FIG. 8 shows a mapping table suitable for mapping the virtual I/Odevices 38, 41, 44 to the physical I/O device 5 in the arrangement ofFIG. 7. The mapping table is accessible to the controller 7 a providedat the bridge 7 so as to allow the controller 7 a to appropriatelydirect received data packets.

While the PCI Express network described above with reference to FIGS. 2and 7 has a single physical I/O device, it will be appreciated thatfurther physical I/O devices may be connected to the switch 6. Wheremore than one physical I/O device is connected to the switch 6, eachphysical I/O device can have a respective independent set of virtualdevices, controlled by the virtualisation proxy controller 29.

FIG. 9 shows an example of a mapping table 45 suitable for mapping twophysical I/O devices, an I/O device A and an I/O device B, to threevirtual I/O devices X, Y, Z. The mapping table of FIG. 9 maps thevirtual I/O devices X and Y to the physical I/O device B while mappingthe virtual I/O device Z to the physical I/O device A. It will beappreciated that any appropriate mapping may be specified, and that themapping may be altered in order to meet varying requirements of virtualmachines running on the server 1. It will be appreciated that in theexample of FIG. 9 the physical I/O devices A and B are connected to asingle switch.

The process of transmitting a control data packet from one of thevirtual machines 25, 26, 27 to the I/O device 5 is now described withreference to FIG. 10 along with the mapping table of FIG. 8 and thearrangement of FIG. 7. The following description assumes that the I/Odevice 5 only provides a single device function and that thevirtualization proxy controller 29 is instructed to provide each of thevirtual I/O devices 38, 41, 44 with a single device function, such thatdata packets are always addressed to the single device function.

Referring now to FIG. 10, at step S15 the switch 6 receives a datapacket from the server 1, addressed to the virtual I/O device 38 (i.e.addressed to device 0, BUS4). If the data packet is a control datapacket, at step S16 it is forwarded to the virtualization proxycontroller 29.

At step S17 the virtualization proxy controller 29 replaces thedestination address specified in the header of the data packet with thecorresponding address from the mapping table 45. In the present example,the destination address specified in the data packet is the virtual I/Odevice 38, which, referring to the table of FIG. 8, is mapped to a queueQUEUE0 of the I/O device 5. At step S18 the virtualization proxycontroller 29 forwards the modified data packet to the physical I/Odevice 5. It should be noted that in addition to modifying the datapacket to include a relevant identifier for the physical I/O device, thevirtualization proxy controller modifies a return address within thedata packet such that a response data packet generated by the I/O device5 is returned to the virtualization proxy controller 29 for processingbefore being directed onwards to the server 1.

In the preceding description it has been explained that switches cancomprise a plurality of interconnected bridges. An arrangement forconnecting the virtualization proxy controller 29 to those bridges isnow described with reference to FIG. 11.

FIG. 11 shows a switch 50 to which a server 51 and an I/O device 52 areconnected. The server 51 is connected to an upstream bridge 53, whilethe I/O device 52 is connected to a down stream bridge 54. Thevirtualization proxy controller 29 is connected to a bridge 55 to whichthe upstream bridge 53 and the downstream bridge 54 are connected. Theupstream bridge 53 is also connected to a further bridge 56.

The virtualisation proxy controller 29 is arranged to virtualize acollection of devices 57 which appear to the server to be connected tothe further bridge 56. That is, the virtualisation proxy controller 29responds to enumeration control packets in such a way that the devicehierarchy as “seen” by the server includes the virtual devices 57connected to the bridge 56. Functionality of the devices 57 is providedby the I/O device 52.

As described above, control data packets transmitted from the server 51to any device connected to the switch 50 are intercepted and redirectedto the virtualisation proxy controller 29. Any unexpected read or writecommunication from the server will comprise a control data packet andwill therefore be redirected to the virtualisation proxy controller 29.Similarly, any unexpected communication from the I/O device 52 to theserver 51 will also comprise a control data packet and will therefore beredirected to the virtualisation proxy controller 29.

Such unexpected communications will include unexpected read or writecommunications. Such unexpected communications will provide addresseswithin the memory of the server 51 at which descriptors of data to betransferred can be found. Such descriptors form a linked list, eachentry in the list identifying data to be transferred. The virtualisationproxy controller 29 receives the diverted information and retrieves thedescriptors from the relevant memory. Given that the retrieval requestsare initiated by the virtualisation proxy controller, the data read isautomatically directed to the virtualisation proxy controller 29. Havingread the data as appropriate, the virtualisation proxy controller canthen appropriately amend the address for which the redirected controldata packet is intended by the server 51 (which may be an address of avirtual I/O device) so as to reference the physical I/O device 52.

The VPC then forwards the request for the data transfer to the I/Odevice 52. The I/O device is then able to access data in the memory ofthe server 51, but in doing so appropriately amends its identity so thatit appears to the server 51 that the request originates from the virtualdevices with which the server 51 is communicating. Such identitymodification can be carried out within the switch 60. When the server 51responds to the request, the response will identify one of the virtualdevices. However a controller 53 a associated with the bridge 53 willamend the identity of the device to which the data is to be sent so asto appropriately direct the data to the I/O device 52.

From the preceding description it can be seen that the virtualisationproxy controller 29 is arranged to create a set of virtual devices 57for use by the server 51. When data is transferred between thosedevices, the virtualisation proxy controller 29 intercepts an expectedcommunication so as to ensure that descriptors provided areappropriately handled. Thereafter, control logic within the switch 50appropriately directs data packets, so as to avoid such packets beingredirected to the virtualisation proxy controller 29.

In the preceding description it has been explained that the bridge 53 ofFIG. 11 has an associated controller 53 a, while the bridge 7 of FIG. 7has an associated controller 7 a. In some embodiments, each bridge of aswitch has an associated controller so as to allow identifiers of aparticular device (in terms of bus and device numbers) to beappropriately amended so that virtual devices can be appropriatelyaccessed by the server 51. That is, in some embodiments, each bridge canincorporate control logic arranged to carry out appropriate modificationof device identifiers.

The preceding description has explained how the virtualization proxycontroller 29 which is external to a switch is concerned with theconfiguration of virtual devices. In alternative embodiments, virtualdevices may be created by circuitry within the switch itself. That is,the functionality described above to create virtual devices may belocated within the switch, thereby obviating the need for thevirtualization proxy controller. However, in some embodiments the use ofthe virtualization proxy controller is preferred as a more standardswitching arrangement can be provided which need not handle thecomplexity involved in creating virtual devices.

Various modifications and applications of the present invention will bereadily apparent to the appropriately skilled person from the teachingherein, without departing form the scope of the appended claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: receiving a discoverydata packet directed to a physical network node associated with aphysical endpoint device in a network; in response to receiving thediscovery data packet, transmitting a first response packet to thediscovery data packet wherein the first response packet includes anidentifier of a virtual network device; receiving at least one furtherdiscovery data packet directed at least to the virtual network device;and in response to receiving the at least one further discovery datapacket, transmitting a second response packet to a first one of the atleast one further discovery data packet, wherein the second responsepacket includes an identifier of a virtual endpoint device, wherein atleast some functionality of the virtual endpoint device is provided bythe physical endpoint device, wherein the physical endpoint deviceprovides at least one device function, and wherein a first function ofthe at least one device function of the physical endpoint deviceprovides functionality for a plurality of virtual endpoint devices.
 2. Amethod according to claim 1, wherein the physical network node comprisesa switch to which the physical endpoint device is connected.
 3. A methodaccording to claim 2, wherein the discovery data packet and the at leastone further discovery data packet are received at the switch, and theresponse packets are generated at the switch.
 4. A method according toclaim 2, wherein the discovery data packet and the at least one furtherdiscovery data packet are received at a control device connected to theswitch, and the response packets are generated at the control device. 5.A method according to claim 4, further comprising: receiving thediscovery data packet and the at least one further discovery data packetat the switch; and redirecting the discovery data packet and the atleast one further discovery data packet to the control device, whereinthe identifiers of the virtual network device and the virtual endpointdevice are provided by the control device.
 6. A method according toclaim 2, wherein the discovery data packet and the at least one furtherdiscovery data packet are received from a device connected to theswitch.
 7. A method according to claim 1, wherein the physical networknode comprises a bridge to which the physical endpoint device isconnected.
 8. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:receiving a data packet addressed to the virtual endpoint device; andtransmitting the data packet to the physical endpoint device.
 9. Amethod according to claim 8, further comprising modifying the datapacket such that the data packet is addressed to the physical endpointdevice.
 10. A method according to claim 9, wherein the physical networknode comprises a switch to which the physical endpoint device isconnected; the discovery data packet and the at least one furtherdiscovery data packet are received at a control device connected to theswitch, and the response packets are generated at the control device;the data packet is received at the switch, and the method furthercomprises: determining at the switch whether the data packet comprises acommand; and if the data packet is determined to comprise a command,forwarding the data packet to the control device.
 11. A method accordingto claim 1, wherein the virtual network device comprises a virtualnetwork node.
 12. A method according to claim 1, further comprisingresponding to a second one of the at least one further discovery datapacket by providing an identifier of a further virtual network device.13. A method according to claim 12, wherein the response to the firstone of the at least one further discovery data packets indicates thatthe virtual endpoint device is connected to the further virtual networkdevice.
 14. A method according to claim 12, wherein the discovery datapacket directed to a physical network node is received at a first time;the second one of the at least one further discovery data packet isreceived at a second time following the first time; and the first one ofthe at least one further discovery data packet is received at a thirdtime following the second time.
 15. A method according to claim 1,further comprising: receiving a plurality of discovery data packets,each of the plurality of discovery data packets directed to a respectivevirtual network device; and responding to each of the plurality ofdiscovery data packets with an identifier of a respective furthervirtual endpoint device.
 16. A method according to claim 1, wherein eachof the discovery data packets are arranged to carry out a depth firstsearch of devices in the network.
 17. A method according to claim 1,wherein the physical endpoint device is an I/O device.
 18. A methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the physical network node is associatedwith a plurality of physical endpoint devices.
 19. A method according toclaim 1, wherein the physical network node is a PCI Express networknode.
 20. A method according to claim 1, wherein each of the discoverydata packets emanate from a server.
 21. A method according to claim 20,wherein the server is arranged to run a plurality of virtual machines.22. A method according to claim 1 further comprising storing a mappingbetween each of the plurality of virtual endpoint devices and arespective queue of the first function of the at least one devicefunction.
 23. A non-transitory computer readable medium carryingcomputer readable instructions configured to cause a computer to carryout a method according to claim
 1. 24. A computer apparatus forproviding identifiers for virtual devices in a network comprising: amemory storing processor readable instructions; and a processor arrangedto read and execute the processor readable instructions stored in thememory; wherein the processor readable instructions compriseinstructions arranged to control the computer apparatus to carry out amethod according to claim
 1. 25. An apparatus for providing identifiersfor virtual devices in a network, the apparatus comprising: means forreceiving a discovery data packet directed to a physical network nodeassociated with a physical endpoint device; means for, in response toreceiving the discovery data packet, transmitting a first responsepacket to the discovery data packet, wherein the first response packetincludes an identifier of a virtual network device; means for receivingat least one further discovery data packet directed at least to thevirtual network device; and means for, in response to receiving the atleast one further discovery data packet, transmitting a second responsepacket to a first one of the at least one further discovery data packet,wherein the second response packet includes an identifier of a virtualendpoint device, wherein at least some functionality of the virtualendpoint device is provided by the physical endpoint device, wherein thephysical endpoint device provides at least one device function, andwherein a first function of the at least one device function of thephysical endpoint device provides functionality for a plurality ofvirtual endpoint devices.
 26. A method comprising: receiving first andsecond discovery data packets directed to a physical network nodeassociated with a physical endpoint device; in response to receiving thefirst discovery data packet, transmitting a first response packet to thefirst discovery data packet and in response to receiving the seconddiscovery data packet, transmitting a second response packet to thesecond discovery data packet, wherein the first response packet includesan identifier of a first virtual network device and the second responsepacket includes an identifier of a second virtual network device;receiving a first further discovery data packet directed at least to thefirst virtual network device and receiving a second further discoverydata packet directed at least to the second virtual network device; andin response to receiving the first further discovery data packet,transmitting a third response packet and in response to receiving thesecond further discovery data packet, transmitting a fourth responsepacket, wherein the third response packet includes an identifier of afirst virtual endpoint device and the fourth response packet includes anidentifier of a second virtual endpoint device, wherein at least somefunctionality of the first and second virtual endpoint devices isprovided by a single function of the physical endpoint device.